On Tap
After a six-day break from competition, Macalester returns to action Saturday when they will take on Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference-leader St. Olaf. The teams are slated to meet at 1 p.m. at the Oles' Mellby Field in Northfield, Minn.
 
Records
Macalester, 7-4-1 overall, 3-2-0 (9 pts) MIAC (tie 3rd place)
St. Olaf, 7-2-1 overall, 4-0-1 (13 pts) MIAC (1st place)
 
When Last We Met
The Scots and Oles battled to a 0-0 draw Oct. 11, 2013, at Macalester Stadium. St. Olaf had an 11-7 advantage in shots, including a 5-1 advantage in the two overtime periods.
 
Last Week
After dropping a 2-1 decision, Tuesday, at St. John's, the Scots rebounded for a 2-1 win in double overtime at home versus Bethel. Danny Baumann scored a goal in both games to extending his goal-scoring streak to three games while Dylan Wong notched the game winner versus Bethel with 13.6 seconds remaining in the second overtime.
 
Following the Scots
There will be no live video of Saturday's game. However, St. Olaf will be providing live stats for the match, which can be found at http://portal.stretchinternet.com/stolaf/stats.htm?eventId=163997&streamType=stats.
 
He's the Boss
Gregg Olson is in his third season at the helm of the Macalester men's soccer team. During his time as the Scots' mentor, he has put together a 19-25-4 record.
 
In his second year with the program, Olson's squad doubled its win total from four to eight, having gone 4-13-1 in 2012 before posting an 8-8-2 mark last season.

Prior to being named the head coach at Macalester, Olson was at Stanford for four seasons and held the David and Kathy Carey Assistant Directorship for Stanford men's soccer in 2011.

A four-year starter for the soccer team and 2000 graduate of Vermont, Olson began his collegiate coaching career at his alma mater in 2002 before moving on to become an assistant for Stanford in 2008. Coaching numerous All-Pac 10 selections, Olson aided in developing several future Major League Soccer players, academic All-Americans, and a Hermann Trophy semi-finalist.  In 2009, the Cardinal advanced to the NCAA Division I "Sweet 16". 
 
As an assistant coach at Vermont, he helped the Catamounts reach the America East Conference tourney four times, win the 2007 conference title, and reach the second round of the NCAA Division I tournament.  Olson coached and recruited numerous current professional players and each season of his collegiate career his teams have earned the NSCAA Team Academic Award.

Olson has coached numerous club soccer teams, including currently serving as the head coach of his second Minneapolis United team. Previous clubs include: Palo Alto SC (Calif.), Santa Clara Sporting (Calif.), and Nordic SC (Vt.). Olson has led his club teams to eight state championships, a regional championship, won such prestigious events as Surf Cup, USA Cup and Cerritos. His club teams have ranked as high as #3 in the nation (GotSoccer). In addition to club soccer, Olson has been involved with the Olympic Development Program as a head state team coach since 2003. Currently he is on staff with Region II ODP. 

A native of Rockford, Illinois, Olson graduated in 2000 with a Bachelor of Science degree in English and Geography from Vermont, where he was team captain as a senior.  Olson also was a three-time winner of the team's Donoson Fitzgerald Award for perseverance, integrity and sportsmanship. After graduating from college, Olson spent two seasons playing semi-professionally before beginning his coaching career. Coach Olson resides in St. Paul. He and his wife, Sarah, have two sons -- Palmer (5) and William (2). 
 
Did You Know?
Danny Baumann's four goals this season are the most by a Macalester first-year player since 2011.
 
Austin Burrows' 13 points are the most by a Scot since current assistant coach Taylor Rasmussen tallied 29 points in 2011.
 
The Race is On
With six teams advancing to the MIAC playoffs this season, seven teams are in the running for those spots.
 
Five teams – Augsburg, Carleton, Macalester, St. John's and St. Thomas – are tied for third with nine points. However, Augsburg, Carleton and St. Thomas have a game in hand over Macalester and St. John's.
 
Where They Stand
Alan Schembri-Wismayer leads the MIAC in all games with eight assists.
 
Austin Burrows is tied for seventh in both goals (5) and points (13).
 
Dylan Wong is tied for eighth and Burrows is tied for 10^th in shots on goal with 15 and 14, respectively.
 
Wong's two game-winning goals is tied for sixth.
 
Zeke Vainer leads all MIAC goalkeepers in minutes played (1107:35) and shutouts (5). He is also tied for first in wins (7), is third in save percentage (.806) and fifth in goals against average (0.89)
 
Olson's Comments
"Obviously, every conference game is crucial. However, from Saturday to Saturday, our next three games are against the top three teams in the MIAC. If we want to make a legitimate run at the playoffs this season, we have to take points from these games."

"The guys enjoyed a few days rest and have begun the week of training with a great mentality. We've been able to continue to make adjustments. Hopefully that translates to a performance on Saturday in Northfield."

Up Next
Four of the Scots' final five games, and all of their remaining MIAC contests, will be at home beginning Tuesday, when they host Carleton in a 7:30 p.m. game at Macalester Stadium. Next Saturday, the Scots take on Gustavus Adolphus at 1 p.m.